Plywood container



Nov. 27, 1934. A. VQUIMBY. ET AL PLYWOOD CONTAINER Filed Oct. 21, 1930 IIIIIIIIIIII r. I- r INVEN TORJ.

Allen Quirnl) Samuel J .54 yin/014k.

Patented Nov. 27, 1934 UNITED STATES PLYWOOD CONTAINER Allen Quimby, Portland, and Samuel J. Antworth, Houlton, Maine, assignors to Northern Maine Plywood Company, tion of Maine Application October 21,

10 Claims.

for packing and shipping fruit or for displaying it at roadside stands.

Heretofore such containers have usually been made of. splints. The splint basket is open to several objections. Being made of splints, it lacks that rigidity and strength so necessary in a shipping package and hence is easily distorted out of shape and requires frequent re-hooping. Under changes of climatic conditions as from hot to cold or dry to wet, the splint basket swells or shrinks, the swelling tending to break the hoops and the shrinkage tending to loosen them; Moreover, the sharp edges of the splints cut or bruise the fruit, making it necessary to use liners and caps of paper or corrugated board in order to cushion the fruit from direct contact with such sharp edges. And finally, the spaces between splints expose the contents of the basket to contamination by dirt, dust and other foreign matter as well as to spoilage by moisture.

In order to avoid the objections to the usual shipping basket and particularly the splint basket, we have devised our present invention. According to it we fabricate our basket practically entirely out of plywood, the construction and method of assembly being such as to provide a basket which can be manufactured at a cost to make it competitive with the usual shipping baskets while at the same time offering decided advantages as regards increased strength, rigidity, freedom from distortion, smoothness, tightness, and lighter shipping weight not found in the ordinary splint basket.

As illustrative of our invention, we show in the accompanying drawing a form of shipping pack age which we have found highly satisfactory under actual service conditions and well adapted to the requirements of commercial manufacture:

In such drawing:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a shipping container in accordance with our invention.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation thereof.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary edge view at right angles to Fig. 2 and particularly illustrating the interlocking action of one of the cover locking projections with one of the combination lifting handles and locking bails of the container.

Figs. 4 and 5 are sections on the lines 4-4 and 55, respectively of Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is a plan showing a modified form of cover, and

Fig'. 7 is a fragmentary detail particularly Portland, Maine, at corpora- 1930, Serial No. 490,240

showing the overlapping of the plywood sheet constituting the side wall of the container.

We have indicated at 1 the side wall of our container, and at 2 and 3, respectively, the top and bottom closures therefor.

The side wall 1 is constituted by a relatively thin sheet of plywood, of any desired number of plies, flexed upon itself into substantially cylindrical form with its end edges 4 and 5 overlapped and fastened together in any suitable manner, as by the staples 6, the end 4 being interiorly and the end 5 being exteriorly disposed. v

At its open upper end, the container wall 1 is reinforced by internal and external hoops 7 and 8, respectively, assembled thereon in any desired .manner as by the staples 9. The ends of the internal hoop 7 meet each other as shown ,in Fig. '7 and the end 4. of the side wall 1 abuts against one of the ends 7 of said hoop. The ends of the external hoop 8 overlap each other as also shown in Fig. 7 with one end 8 skived and abutting the end 5 of the side wall 1 and with its other end 8 overlapping the skived end 8' and tapered and fastened by a separate staple 10.

At its open bottom end the wall 1 is reinforced by internal and external hoops 11 and 12, respectively, stapled or otherwise fastened thereto as at 13 and corresponding generally to the hoops 7 and 8 in their arrangement and method of assembly, that is to say, the lower hoop assembly substantially duplicates the upper hoop assembly.

The top and bottom closures 2 and 3 are discs of plywood of any desired number of plies. As such they have some flexibility. The bottom closure 3 is supported on the internal hoop 11.

If desired saidclosure may be stapled to said hoop,

or internal lining strips may be applied over it to prevent it from moving upwardly. Being of plywood such bottom closure affords a smooth and uninterrupted surface against which the contents of the container may directly contact.

The top closure or covenmember 2 is removably mounted over the mouth of the container and is provided with means whereby it may be positively locked in position as well as means constituting a hinge whereby when unlocked the cover may be swung upwardly to permit access to the container contents or to permit display thereof without requiring complete removal of the cover from the" open mouth of the container.

For the purpose of generally securing the cover in position over the open mouth of the container, the cover is provided with a pair of oppositely disposed locking projections 14 extending beyond the peripheral edge of the cover and adapted for 15 by which they are engaged sufficiently tightly to prevent accidental displacement of the cover.

In the form shown in Figs. 1 to 5 inclusive the locking projections 14 are formed as integral extensions of the plywood cover 2 itself, such projections extending in the general trend of the grain G as best shown in Fig. 1. By extending the projections 14 in the general direction of 'the grain the tendency of the projections 14- to break off, should the entire basket and its contents be lifted by grasping the projections 14, is reduced.

In the alternative form shown in Fig. 6 the locking projections for the cover are constituted by the projecting ends of a cleat 16 which is secured in any desired manner to the upper face of the topclosure 2 and preferably extends in a direction transverse to the trend of the grain G of said cover.

In either instance the cover may be additionally secured by means of the combination fastening and hinge members 17. These are simple loops or the like fastened through the upper edge of the side wall 1, preferably being clinched in the outer surface of outer reinforcing hoop 8 and extending therethrough and through the side wall 1 and inner hoop 7 and thence being bent upwardly and passed through a pair of slots 18 registering therewith and formed in the cover adjacent its opposite edges. This is indicated in Fig. 4 wherein one of the members 1'? is shown in dotted lines as having been entered through one of the slots 18 and thereafter bent downwardly over and around the edge of the cover member as shown in full lines in said figure.

The members 17 when bent to the full line position of Fig.4 serve with the projections 14 slots 18 are'slightly longer than the width of the members 17 so as to permit a limited relative movement of the cover in the direction of the locking projections 14 whereby these projection may be disengaged from thebails 15. I

Should it be desired to hinge the cover on the container without securely looking it in position, one of the members 17 may be utilized for this purpose, one'of the slots 18 being first registered with said member 1'? and the member 1'7 entered in such slot so as to constitute a loose hinge connection for the cover.

Inasmuch as both the top and bottom closures are plywood, they are sufficiently flexible to permit proper packing of the fruit or other contents of the container. Moreover said closures as well as the wall 1' present smooth and relatively uninterrupted surfaces against which the contents of the container may directly. contact, thus makingit unnecessaryto employ any special liners or caps for cushioning the contents from direct contact with these parts.

It will be noted that our container is tight. without gaps or spaces between parts as in the case of the splint basket and hence offers the maximum protection to the contents of the package against contamination by the entrance of foreign matter or spoilage by moisture. The effects of expansion and contraction, due 1.50 @3- treme temperature changes are fully taken care of by the constructional features of our container and hence our container does not require frequent re-hooping. Moreover, our construction is such as to afford that rigidity and strength against distortion stresses so necessary in a package which is to receive the rough handling incidental to its use as a shipping package.

Various modifications in the construction of our device may obviously be resorted to if within the spirit and scope of our invention without departing from the limits of the appended claims. By having the grain of the wood in the outer ply of, the so-called side material 1 extend up and down, or vertically, it will be seen that the edge 5 is left clean, as this edge is parallel with the grain of the wood in the outer plane. Such an edge needs no salvage or binding to prevent breakage, or to make it a clean, smooth edge.

Thus it will be seen that solidly united plywood is employed in the manufacture of containers involving the invention, and that plywood of this character is essential to the invention, and that the improvements relate essentially to the efficient and effective use of plywood in the manufacture of containers. The outermost ply of the side walls of the container has the grain of the wood extending up and down therein, thereby in effect forming an annular stay to prevent the top and bottom of the container from breaking apart. The grain of the wood of the inner ply extends circumferentially of the container, and this inner ply in effect forms a cylindrical hoop to prevent longitudinal or up-and-down splitting of the container. This cylindrical hoop, formed by an integr'al portion of the plywood material, preferably an inner solidly united ply thereof, co-operates with the separate'hoops, of course, to prevent longitudinal or up-and-down splitting of the container. The top and bottom walls of the container are also formed with solidly united plywood, as shown, and in this way the entire structure is characterized by plywood material in which the plies or layers are adhesively and solidly united to form a complete container structure having surprising strength, notwithstanding the light weight of the structure.

It will be seen that with the construction thus involving the invention a practically one piece multi-ply veneer body is formed, having a permanently stitched joint at one side thereof, and capable in itself of maintaining its shape and form. Thus the primary strength is in the prac-' tically one piece body, and even the major strength may be in this body, with multi-ply veneer and staples of proper strength and number. This is not-only because of the character and arrangement of the plies of the plywood body, but also because of the non-pull-out character of the fasteners: used to join the opposite ends of the single sheet of plywood from which the body is made. The staples heads must each extend crosswiseof some of the grain of the wood, no matter how the staples are driven, and in this way they will not pull out, ano form a permanent wire stitching for the lap-joint. In this way, more of the bursting strain is imposed on and retained by the body of the container, and less of said strain is imposed on the hoops. The latter confer strength, but they are not nearly as necessary with the construction shown and described as they are iii-ordinary baskets or tub-like containers of this general character in which the side walls or body ordinarily confer very little strength to resist the bursting strain when the container is loaded. With the novel construction shown and described, a practically one piece and self-maintaining body has great primary strength, and may be capable of assuming the major portion of the bursting strain, and this is very largely because of the permanent and nonpull-out character of the Wire stitching by which the opposite ends of the sheet of plywood are securely and permanently fastened together.

Obviously, the closure is essentially and primarily a hoopless cover, for the invention does not in any way relate to covers that are built on hoops, but to the contrary relates to the manufacture of plywood covers of such character that they obviate the necessity of using hoops for the covers of baskets or containers of this kind.

What we therefore claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. As an article of manufacture, a container of tub-like basket shape having impervious side walls presenting a smooth unbroken surface except for a lap joint extending down one side thereof, having its top provided with a solid impervious fiat hoopless cover of solidly united plywood, forming a practically one-piece smooth flat cover with the grain of the wood extending crosswise in the plies thereof, handles on the rim of said container, and integral projections on opposite edges of said cover extending under said handles, said plywood providing the cover with a clean unbroken circular edge extending over the upper edge of the container, and said grain of the wood of the uppermost ply extending longitudinally of said projections, across the cover from one projection to the other, preventing said projections from being broken when bent downward, together with an impervious bottom cooperating with said cover and side walls to form a thoroughly tight container.

2. As an article of manufacture, in combina tion with a container of tub-like basket shape having impervious side walls presenting a smooth unbroken surface except for a lap joint extend ing down one side thereof, a hoopless top wall therefor comprising a flat sheet of solidly united plywood material having a clean circular unbroken edge formed by the plywood material, forming a practically one-piece impervious cover with the grain of the wood extending crosswise in the plies thereof, and means cooperating with said plywood edge to fasten the top wall upon the container, with the circular edge thereof extending over and exposed upon the uppermost edge of the container, said plywood serving to prevent breakage of the annular edge of said sheet, said hoopless top wall having integral projections at diametrically opposite points on the circular edge thereof, with the grain of the wood of the uppermost ply of said material extending longitudinally of said projections, across the upper surface of the top wall, from one projection to the other, preventing said projections from being broken when bent downward, and handles fastened to the rim of said container and extending over said projections, together with an impervious bottom co-operating with said cover and side walls to form a thoroughly tight container. I

3. As an article of manufacture, in combination with a container of tub-like basket shape having impervious side Walls presenting a smooth unbroken surface except for a lap joint extending down one side thereof, a hoopless top wall therefor comprising a flat sheet of solidly united plywood material having a clean circular unbroken edge formed by the plywood material, forming a practically one-piece impervious cover with the grain of the wood extending crosswise in the plies thereof, and means co-operating with said plywood edge to fasten the top wall upon the container, with the circular edge thereof extending over and exposed upon the uppermost edgeof the container, said plywood serving to prevent breakage of the annular edge of said sheet, a batten fastened to the upper surface of said plywood top wall, extending crosswise of the grain of the wood of theuppermost ply, with the ends of the batten extending beyond the clean circular plywood edge of the top wall, and handles secured to the rim of the container and extending over the projecting ends of said batten. together with an impervious bottom co-operating with said cover and side walls to form a thoroughly tight container.

4. As an article of'manufacture, an impervious cover, a container underlying the cover'and comprising annular plywood side walls of solidly united plywood secured to said cover, forming a practically one-piece impervious body with a larger end for said cover and with a permanently stitched longitudinal joint at one side' thereof and capable in itself of maintaining its shape and form, with the outside ply having the grain of the wood thereof extending longitudinally from top to bottom of the container, forming in effect an annular stay to prevent the top and bottom of the container from breaking apart, and with an inner ply having the grain of the wood extending circumferentially of the container, forming in effect an annular hoop to prevent longitudinal splitting of the container, having top and bottom lapped encircling hoops, with one end of each hoop butted squarely against the outer edge of said joint, and staples by which the plywood and hoops are bound together and by which overlapping portions of the side walls are fastened together at said joint, whereby each staple in any position thereof must and does straddle some of the grain of the wood of said walls, regardless of the angle of the head of the staple, together with an impervious bottom for the smaller end of the body co-operating with said cover and side walls to form a thoroughly tight container.

5. As an article of manufacture, a container having wire handles for the rim thereof, a hoopless impervious cover comprising a flat sheet of solidly united plywood, the grain of the wood extending crosswise in the plies, provided with projections which extend under said handles, and formed with slots in the plywood near the edges of the cover, at points midway between the handles, with the edges of the plies flush at all of the edges, of the cover, together with wire fasten ers having their lower ends inserted outwardly through the container rim and having their body portions extending upwardly inside the rim and through said slots and bent down over the edges of the cover, said cross grain plywood serving to prevent breakage of the cover edges, particularly the edges upon which said fasteners bear immediately outside of said slots, together with an impervious bottom co-operating with said cover and side walls to form a thoroughly tight container, all forming a covered container of tub-like basket shape.

6. As an article of manufacture, a container having an impervious cover, annular side walls of solidly united plywood material, forming a practically one-piece body with a permanently stitched longitudinal joint at one side thereof and capable in itself of maintaining its shape and form, comprising top and bottom encircling hoops, each hoop being formed. by a wood strip with lapping end portions, with the inner end of each hoop butted squarely against the outer edge of said joint, the overlapping outer end of each hoop being tapered to a less width than the underlying portion thereof, with a relatively wide staple inserted through each underlying hoop portion to straddle the overlying tapered portion adjacent the end thereof, relatively narrow staples securing the body of each hoop at intervals throughout the circumference thereof to said plywood sidewalls, and top and bottom inside hoops secured by staples concentrically within said outer hoops, together with an impervious bottom co-operating with said cover and side walls to form a thoroughly tight container.

7. As an article of manufacture, a container comprising a hoopless impervious cover, annular side walls of solidly united plywood fastened to said cover, underlying the latter, with overlapping portions fastened together at one side of the container, forming a practically one-piece body with a larger end for said cover and with a permanently stitched longitudinal joint at one side thereof and capable in itself of maintaining its shape and form, with the grain of the wood of the outer ply extending longitudinally of the container, forming a clean square external edge extending from top to bottom down the one side of the container, top and bottom hoops encircling the container, each hoop comprising a single thickness wood strip with an underlying end butted squarely against said square edge, and

end of said body co-operating with said cover and side walls to form a thoroughly tight container.

8. As an article of manufacture, in combination with a hoopless impervious cover, means forming a practically one-piece body with a permanently stitched longitudinal joint at one side thereof and capable in itself of maintaining its shape and form, top and bottom hoops each having its inner end butted against the outer edge of said joint, a bottom therefor comprising .a fiat impervious sheet of solidly united plywood of the wood extending crosswise of other grain of the wood and is presented to the innermost surface of the sides of the container, being of a diameter to pass from one end of the container to the other, and means co-operating with said edge to support the bottom in the container, said plywood serving to prevent breakage of the annular edge of said bottom, all forming a tight container of tub-like basket shape.

9. In a container of downwardly tapered form, a top wall cover therefor comprising a hoopless impervious flat sheet of solidly united cross-grain plywood material having a clean non-breakable circular edge formed by the plywood material, and means co-operating with said plywood edge to fasten the top wall upon the container, with the circular edge thereof extending over and exposed upon the uppermost edge of the container, the cross-grain of said plywood serving to prevent breakage of the annular edge of said top wall.

10. As an article of manufacture, a hoopless impervious cover, a container body underlying the cover and having round or curved sidewalls formed from a single sheet of cross grain plywood material, forming a practically one'piece body with a larger end for said cover and'with a permanently stitched longitudinal joint at one side thereof and capable in itself of maintaining its shape and form," outside hoops each having an inner end butted squarely against the outer edge of said joint, said material comprising a plurality of plies of wood veneer solidly adhering to each other, with the grain of the outside ply extending up and down or vertically of the container and forming in effect an annular stay to prevent the top. and bottom of'the container from breaking apart, with the grain of the wood of an inner ply extending circumferentially of the container and forming in effect an annular hoop to prevent longitudinal splitting of the container.

and with end portions of the sheet overlapped to form a lap-joint or seam at one side of the container, said grain of the wood forming a clean outer multi-ply edge for said lap-joint or seam, together with an impervious bottom for the smaller end of ,said body co-operating with said cover and side walls to form a thoroughly tight container.

ALLEN QUIMBY.

SAMUEL J. ANTWORTH. 

